Strange Dungeons

I did give it deep thought. For a time, they both sat in the midst of the online shopping cart.

I have been reading some very interesting articles, reviews and chatter on 5e. I would be lying if I said I had taken no interest in it. I have, rather, been reading quite a bit of it. I purchased the Dungeons & Dragons 5e Starter Set soon after it’s release and availability in the UK.

However, I have not yet read it, played it, or given it a great deal of thought.

On the other hand, I have run three games of Numenera and played in a couple of sessions. I have also done a fair amount of reading through several licenced third party products. Therefore, I feel more certain I will make use of The Strange and give it my time and attention.

I fear that if I buy the Player’s Handbook, it will sit in the midst of my reading pile and find no further attention forthcoming. I mean, I got a cheap copy of the Pathfinder rules a little while back and I haven’t got much further with my investigations of that. Indeed, Pathfinder served as a springboard to look elsewhere more than anything else. I probably wouldn’t have purchased Whitehack or investigated Lorefinder if not for that thick hardback sitting in my reading pile. If I hadn’t looked at Lorefinder, I possibly wouldn’t be running my rather satisfying Gumshoe The Enemy Within campaign.

But, the idea of getting something that might see use rather than something that definitely will doesn’t appeal to me at all.

I have, in some small way, found a special love for the Cypher system. I suspect, given the right sense of creative urgency, I might find myself writing my own third party product for Numenera or The Strange.

I also saw someone mention Lords of Creation… as much as anything as a frame of reference for their understanding of what The Strange might be like. While I can’t vouch for any hint of association between the two concepts without looking into it further, it does appeal to me. LoC is a guilty pleasure of mine and I own all the original boxed sets for this game, which I also played in my formative gaming years.

I might have a package waiting for me when I get home. Then I have a decision to make. I’m already 160 pages into the Call of Cthulhu 7e Keeper’s book and 130 pages into Rogue Trader… so, can I juggle a third big fat book into my current reading pile?

(Before you ask how this reading dilemma has come about, I have reading piles in different locations – with CoC getting most attention as bedtime reading and WH40K:RT filling moments in the house’s smallest room)

2 thoughts on “Strange Dungeons”

Paul, I understand your dilemma. I had one too, between Numenera and The Strange. I went to GenCon planning to buy Numenera (having browsed through the PDF I got thanks to Bundle of Holding), but found the Strange there too! I think each would please a different part of my brain. I hadn’t thought about the loose similarity to Lords of Creation (which I also loved in my early gaming days), but maybe that’s what helped me decide on The Strange.

As I mentioned, I hope to have The Strange to browse over this evening (or, at least, this weekend). I loved the premise of Lords of Creation – so, if is similar in any way, that’ll be brilliant.

On the CoC 7e side, I’m a Kickstarter backer and we have been given access to a backer proof. I’m working through it methodically to both ‘learn the game’ and identify missed errors. Having played CoC since the mid-80s, the learning is about what’s changed – so, it’s interesting.